The former Valencia man has been in fine form for Chelsea so far this season but the Stamford Bridge No.9 believes his club-mate's international omission is just a sign of the strength in depth available to La Roja boss Vicente del Bosque.

"Mata is sad about not coming to the national team, but he is playing well. I won't talk much about him because I can't be objective," he told reporters.

"We have very versatile players and that is very useful. Today here we have the 23 players the coach believe should be. In Spain we are lucky to have more than 23 players able to come. Those who have been out at times, we know.

"The national team doesn't always play with the same players, there are players who come in and others who go out. That's the greatness of this team, we have 23 starting players."

Torres also insisted that the world and European champions are not contemplating their high-profile Group I clash against France on Tuesday, but are instead completely focused on Friday's trip to Belarus.

He also expressed his concern over the current issues with Spanish broadcasting rights for the game in Minsk, and hopes that it will be resolved in time for kick-off.

"This [Belarus] is the important game, not against France," Torres insisted. "We'll have time to think about that one, in Spain we would like to see the game in TV, but we will have to wait to see what happens."

The game against France could represent the first time Torres walks out onto the Vicente Calderon pitch since leaving Atletico Madrid in 2007, and the former Rojiblancos captain admits that it would mean a lot to him.

He explained: "This is the first time I'll play there if God wants. It will be an important and special day."